1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connector provided with a restricting projection for preventing the upside-down insertion of a terminal fitting.
2. Description of the Related Art
A known connector with a restricting projection for preventing upside-down insertion of a terminal fitting is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 5-47433. This connector is constructed such that a restricting projection is formed on one side surface of a female terminal fitting, and a guiding groove for permitting the passage of this restricting projection is formed in the inner wall of a cavity of a connector housing. When the terminal fitting is properly oriented, the restricting projection can pass along the guide groove and the terminal can be inserted into the cavity. When the terminal fitting is upside-down, the restricting projection is unable to enter the guiding groove, and hence the terminal fitting cannot be inserted into the cavity.
This type of prior art connector generally is provided with a resin locking portion for locking the terminal fitting into the cavity and a retainer for preventing the deformation of the resin locking portion in an unlocking direction. The retainer is mountable on the connector housing by engaging an elastic engaging claw integrally formed therewith with an engaging hole formed in the connector housing.
However, in the aforementioned connector, the guide groove in the connector housing and the engaging hole used to mount the retainer must be formed independently. This complicates the construction of a mold, especially of a pin portion for forming the cavity, thereby increasing the cost for the mold. Furthermore, the pin is less rigid and more likely to break.
In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a connector which can be produced by a mold having a simplified construction.